Saving 

New Jersey’s

VANISHING

Shores

United States EPA-236-F-99-005

Environmental Protection

Agency July 1999

For More Information Office of Policy (2171) ■ See the U.S. Environmental Protection 

Agency’s global warming website at 

www.epa.gov/globalwarming. 

■ For specific information about coastal 

communities, see www.epa.gov/

globalwarming/stakeholders/coastal/

index.html.

■ Contact New Jersey’s Department of 

Environmental Protection at 

www.state.nj.us/dep or call them at 

609-292-2885.

■ For information on flood insurance, call 

800-480-2520 and ask for a booklet titled 

“Answers to Questions About the National 

Flood Insurance Program.”

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL

PROTECTION AGENCY

Office of Policy (2171)

401 M Street, SW

Washington, DC 20460

Are New Jersey’s

Beaches Disappearing? Most beaches along the Atlantic and

Gulf Coasts of the United States are

eroding a few feet per year. In some

locations, jetties, storms, seawalls, and motorboats cause the erosion. But rising sea level is the

primary reason that most shores erode. Along

the New Jersey shore, sea level is rising 1 inch

every 6 years. Both rising global temperatures

and gradually sinking land contribute to the

higher water levels—and that means more

erosion. 

In some states, homeowners are removing their

oceanfront houses along eroding shores. The

beach survives, but the building is lost. Along bay

shores, owners often protect their homes from erosion by replacing the natural beach with wooden

walls (bulkheads) or piles of rock (revetments). The

property survives, but the beach is lost. 

Here along the New Jersey shore, people want to

keep both the beach and their homes.

Depending on when you visit, you may see

dump trucks releasing sand and bulldozers

spreading it to rebuild a beach. Or a dredge

pumping sand from the sea floor through a pipe

to the beach. Or people putting up snow fencing

and planting grasses to hold the dunes. 

Without these activities, some communities

would lose their beaches, while others would

lose their shorefront homes, condominiums,

hotels, and other buildings. 

Saving 

New Jersey’s

VANISHING

Shores

The Threat of Global

Warming Carbon dioxide and other gases in the

atmosphere let sunlight penetrate to the

earth’s surface but retain heat that would

otherwise escape into space. This mechanism is

called the “greenhouse effect” because it is somewhat like the way that the glass in a greenhouse

traps heat. 

The atmosphere’s greenhouse effect keeps the

earth 60 ̊Fahrenheit warmer than it would be

otherwise. But human activities, such as burning

oil, coal, and natural gas in everything from

power plants to cars and boats, are increasing

the concentration of greenhouse gases. As a

result, the earth has warmed almost 1 ̊Fahrenheit

in the last century.

Warmer temperatures can increase the intensity

of severe rainstorms. Higher temperatures also

raise sea level by expanding ocean water and

melting mountain glaciers. Along the New Jersey

shore, rising sea level erodes beaches, increases

flooding, and threatens coastal habitat.

Printed on Recycled Paper
Storms May Do Mor

e

Damage

Hurricanes and other storms can raise the sea

temporarily by 5 to 10 feet—or more. Higher

seas bring higher floods. 

The narrowing beaches also could enable large

waves to reach oceanfront buildings, roads, and

boardwalks. Along the bays, where land elevations

are lowest, increased rainfall from global warming

could intensify coastal flooding even more. 

The Federal Emergency Management Agency

estimates that a 1-foot rise in sea level could

increase flood insurance premiums by 35 to 60

percent. Not only will permanent residents be

faced with higher premiums, hotels and land-

lords generally will pass these costs on to visitors.

What about Wetlands?

Coastal marshes and bay beaches provide habitat

for New Jersey’s horseshoe crabs, ribbed mussels,

fiddler crabs, seaside sparrows, redwinged black-

birds, osprey, and other species of wildlife. 

New Jersey’s coastal wetlands are mostly within

2 feet of sea level, and many are eroding already.

Hence even a moderate rise in sea level could

threaten these ecosystems.

What Is New Jersey

Doing? ■ The state sets aside $15 million per year for

shore protection and sand replenishment.

■ All New Jersey coastal communities 

participate in the National Flood Insurance 

Program, which insures buildings against 

flood damages. Approximately 161,000 

property owners in New Jersey have federal 

flood insurance policies.

■ The state’s Coastal Area Facilities Review Act 

discourages construction that would later require seawalls.

■ The New Jersey Department of Environmental 

Protection has called for a reduction in the 

state’s greenhouse gas emissions to 3.5 percent 

below 1990 levels by 2005. 

■ Coastal planners and municipal officials can 

now access and share information about 

New Jersey’s coastal environment using the 

Geographic Information System (GIS).

■ A draft strategic plan calls for a reduction 

of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions of 

3.5 percent below 1990 levels by the 

year 2005.

■ A number of New Jersey companies are 

doing their part to reduce energy use. For 

example, Warner-Lambert, a marketer of 

personal health care products, replaced 

Why Care About

Erosion?

Most of the Jersey shore is developed.

As the sea rises, the beach is squeezed

between the sea and the first row of

buildings. Along ocean shores, this

means less room for vacationers and

local residents to sunbathe, play volley-

ball, or build sandcastles. Along the

bays, there is less room for sand-

pipers, horseshoe crabs, and other

wildlife that feed or breed in the

sandy habitat. Rising global temperatures have added

about 2 to 5 inches to sea level in the

last century, but they could raise the

sea another 1 to 3 feet in the next cen-

tury—in addition to the rise caused by

factors such as sinking land. Such a

rise would be enough to erode most of

the nation’s recreational beaches

about 100 feet. 

Even today, many bay

beaches and narrow

strips of wetlands are

being squeezed between

the advancing sea and

increasing coastal 

development.

Even today, many bay

beaches and narrow

strips of wetlands are

being squeezed between

the advancing sea and

increasing coastal 

development.

Save ourVANISHING shores.

more than 19,000 light bulbs with more effi-

cient bulbs and saved 1.7 million kilowatthours of electricity per year.

What Can You Do? ■ When visiting Atlantic City or the North 

Jersey Shore, take the train.

■ If you own a shorefront home threatened by 

erosion, haul in sand or plant vegetation to 

hold back the sea rather than building a 

seawall.

■ Enjoy the sea breeze, listen to the waves, and

turn off the air conditioner.

■ When it’s time to replace your car, consider 

one that gets more miles per gallon than 

your present vehicle.

■Avoid walking on sand dunes and destroying

their ability to protect the shorelines from 

storms and erosion.

■ When it’s time to replace an appliance, 

look for the ENERGY STAR

® label

identifying energy-efficient models.

■ If your home is at risk, talk to your insurance

agent about federal flood insurance. Homeowners insurance does not cover flood damages.

■ Buy products that feature reusable, recyclable,

or reduced packaging to save the energy required to manufacture new containers.